Dance

It has been observed by a pensive and inquisitive mind that most people in this world view their surroundings as though they were merely glancing at the cover of a glossy magazine while hurriedly exiting a supermarket: people tend to look quickly, figure out the general concept of the magazine issue, and then proceed to neatly tuck away the memory of that magazine cover in their mind as they trot on down the check out isle. They never pick up the journal, never thoroughly read the articles contained within that shiny bit of paper, never really understand what is going on inside of it.

This depiction of the overwhelming tendency of individuals to formulate opinions of people, places and things solely based on a casual observance of their outward appearance stirred up great emotion in my heart. I am a 21 year old woman who has put herself through college by working as an entertainer at an upscale Chicago gentleman's club. I realized recently that I myself was only superficially aware of what it truly means to patronize or to be employed by a gentleman's club. Of course, I was aware of the fact that on the most basic level, a pricey gentleman's club provides a wealthy and extravagant individual with a venue where he can comfortably indulge in the finest champagnes and scotches while basking in the bubbly personalities and beautiful bodies of paid entertainers.

I decided to study the inner workings of a gentleman's club and to write about the effect that working in such an environment would have on women employed by such a club. As I delved deeper into my research, I realized that I could not fairly describe the effect that working in the adult entertainment industry would have on women because I didn't fully understand the service that was actually being provided by "entertainers." Simply put, we entertainers make our living by receiving money from men in exchange for spending time with them, and usually in exchange for stripping off our clothes for them. But what else are we really selling that would inspire a man who is not allowed to touch us (therefore gaining no physical pleasure from the woman whom he commissions to dance for him) to pay in excess of four hundred dollars an hour for our company ? What exactly are exotic dancers selling ? Through extensive research, I have come to realize that such women sell the occupation of their time, they sell a customer permission to glance upon their bodies in various degrees of undress, and they sell the luxury of allowing a customer to be charmed by their lovely manners and delightful personalities.

Which raises another point: why are men interested in buying the right to look upon a woman naked and to pay for the privilege of spending time with her? The reasons go far beyond wanting to indulge their desire for the sheer pleasure and excitement that is sparked by viewing a naked woman. Customers can be drawn to patronize a club for a whole multitude of reasons, ranging from the innocent (coming to the club merely to relax and to gaze harmlessly at the women who dance there) to the sinister ( wanting to pay a woman for her time because one could then force her to do as he pleased, putting him in a hugely dominating position over her).

Assuming that there are men who enter a club with the intention of degrading and objectifying them women who dance in that establishment, then let me pose a question: how does a man's objectification of a dancer affect that woman's life and self image? Is it possible for a woman to work in a field where she knows that she is constantly viewed as somehow less than human, viewed as a body who can be commanded to do whatsoever a man pleases, to maintain a normal and healthy lifestyle?

Over the course of this paper, I hope to share with the reader what I have learned about what the psychological repercussions are for women who dance. I have had the good fortune of accessing the works of psychologists who have happened to specialize in the field of human sexuality and who take a special interest in the lives of exotic dancers and in the lives of the men who regularly visit such establishments. Through my studies, I believe that I have accumulated a general sense of what exotic dancers are "really" selling, about what the men who pay them for their time are "really" hoping to gain from their visits to gentleman's clubs, and about the effects that this strange industry may possibly have upon those who are employed by it. It is my hope that I may share with the readers of this study a glimpse into the "real" lives of the women who choose to seek employment in this exotic field, and to describe the effects that their trade has upon their conscious and unconscious minds.

As I began my research, I was highly irritated to discover that many of the articles I found were thrown in with research done on "sex workers." Sex workers are prostitutes, call girls and individuals who perform live or videotaped sex acts. Many exotic dancers are highly offended when they are lumped in with those who actually exchange sex for money. As was stated by Dr. Katherine Frank ( a female psychologist who paid for her education by working as an exotic dancer, all the while writing her doctorate on the mentality of men who patronize gentleman's clubs), "We (exotic dancers) sell the idea of sex. We do not sell the act of sex. We sell a sexual fantasy without actually copulating."

The fact that exotic dancers do not literally sell sexual favors to customers is often a quiet reassurance to entertainers. Oftentimes, dancers view themselves as models or actresses. They feel that their work is no more demeaning than that of an actress who is paid to perform a nude scene in a highly popular film. Although dancers may not actually be seen in any less "compromising" or revealing positions than the stars of blockbuster movies, the experience of dancing nude for a paying customer is a far different one then the experience of removing one's clothing on a closed television set. So it is safe to say that even though a starlet and a stripper may both show their bodies to the general public, the effects of their acts of nudity on their mental states are entirely different.

What effects does dancing exotically have upon women who chose to do so? Much research has been done on this topic in recent years. Jo Doezma and Ronald Weitzer, both psychologists who specialize in the study of women and the sex industry, believe that the stripping does not always have an entirely negative affect on women. Rather, the experience of dancing places upon a woman an element of psychological stress akin to experiencing a divorce or a loss of a loved one. Going through any stressful will undoubtedly cause some "emotional excitement."